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Balikatan is the name for the annual military exercises between the Philippines and the United States. It is a Tagalog word meaning "shoulder-to-shoulder". The April 2015 10-day exercises is the 32nd iteration of the Balikatan exercises. The exercises have been the cornerstone of Philippines-United States military relations since the U.S. bases in the Philippines closed. In 2014, Australian armed forces participated in Balikatan exercises and will do so again in 2015.〔 Australia has a visiting forces agreement, a type of a status of forces agreement, with the Philippines called Philippine-Australia Status of Visiting Forces Agreement.〔 The Philippines is open to other countries participating provided that they too have a similar forces agreement.〔 ==Background== The U.S. acquired the Philippines after the Spanish–American War of 1898 and the subsequent Philippine–American War. The United States granted the Philippines independence in 1946.〔("Philippines: A Country Study" ) Federal Research Division, U.S. Library of Congress〕 In 1951, the governments of the United States and the Philippines signed the Mutual Defense Treaty to "strengthen the fabric of peace" in the Pacific by agreeing to defend each other's territory in the case of external attack.〔The Avalon Project, ("Mutual Defense Treaty Between the United States and the Republic of the Philippines; August 30, 1951" ) Yale Law School, Lillian Goldman Law Library〕 In line with this treaty, the United States maintained until 1992 several military bases in the Philippines, including Subic Bay Naval Base and the Clark Air Base. In 1998, following the bases' closure, the RP–US Visiting Forces Agreement (VFA) was signed which contained guidelines for the conduct and protection of American troops visiting the Philippines and stipulated the terms and conditions for the American military to enter Philippine territory. The VFA is a reciprocal agreement in that also outlines the requirements for Philippine troops visiting the United States.〔("Visiting Forces Agreement" ) U.S. Department of State, 1998〕 The Visiting Forces Agreement led to the establishment of the Balikatan exercises, as well as a variety of other cooperative measures.〔("Frequently Asked Questions: Visiting Forces Agreement" ) Presidential Commission on the Visiting Forces Agreement〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Balikatan」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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